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The British Open champion fired a course record 63 to win the Sun City Challenge with an impressive 21-under-par 267 aggregate.
It was Els's sixth title of the year and he finished a full eight shots clear of second-placed Colin Montgomerie of Scotland.
Els's bogey-free card boasted nine birdies alongside as many pars as he claimed the $2 million winner's cheque -- the biggest in golf -- for the third time in four years.
It was Els's 28th consecutive sub-par round at Sun City and capped a fine season during which he appears to have come to terms with the pre-eminence of world number one Tiger Woods.
"I think I was a bit more disciplined and fitter than ever before," the world number three replied on Sunday when asked about the key to his 2002 success.
"I also made peace with the fact that Tiger Woods was out there. I decided to play my own game and not think about him.
"And it's gone well as a result."
In any other generation Els might well have been the world's outstanding golfer and the realisation this may never be the case has led to some serious soul-searching for the man they call the 'Big Easy'.
But finishing the season on such a high note will allow him to enjoy a well-earned winter break after a season when he also welcomed the birth of his second child Ben.
Els has just one more tournament this year -- his own charity fundraiser, the Ernie Els Invitational in George, South Africa -- and his 63
Finishing eight shots clear of a field that featured eight of the world's top 13 players is an impressive achievement in anybody's books.
BEST ROUNDS
"This is probably one of the rounds of my career," Els said on Sunday.
"It's not too often I have shot 63 in the final round of a championship.
"I wasn't going after 63 when I started. I was trying to get to 16 or 17 under -- it's not always easy to shoot a low score in the final round when you have all the pressure of being in the lead."
As well as his British Open and Sun City titles, Els also won the World Match Play Championship, the Heineken Classic, the Dubai Desert Classic and the Genuity Championship in America.
"This round was a little bit special," Els added after needing just 30 shots on the back half of the Gary Player Country Club on Sunday.
"It was just one of those things. I don't know what it is -- you get into a zone or something and everything goes right.
"It's always great to play in front of your home crowd but to win in this manner is even better.
"This has been a wonderful year for me, winning the (British) Open Championship, becoming the father of a baby son and now rounding off the season winning the biggest prize in golf."
Els is one of the most popular players in the sport today and many will hope he finds the same zone next season.
